


octopi can become very territorial when threatened

by MegaWallflower



Category: Naruto
Genre: Alternate Universe - Merpeople, Cecaelias, Challenges, Consentacles, Crushes, Flirting, Forced to Watch, Jealousy, M/M, Neck Kissing, No Sex, Rivalry, Seahorses, Tentacles, Underwater, Unrequited Crush, Unresolved Sexual Tension
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-02
Updated: 2021-02-02
Packaged: 2021-03-13 03:01:26
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,080
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29146344
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MegaWallflower/pseuds/MegaWallflower
Summary: Ebisu and Genma see Kakashi and Guy having another battle. Ebisu knows a not-so-fun fact about octopus tentacles.
Relationships: Ebisu & Maito Gai | Might Guy, Ebisu & Shiranui Genma, Ebisu & Shiranui Genma & Maito Gai | Might Guy, Hatake Kakashi/Maito Gai | Might Guy, Maito Gai | Might Guy & Shiranui Genma
Comments: 8
Kudos: 61





	octopi can become very territorial when threatened

**Author's Note:**

> Team Choza mermaid designs: https://twitter.com/spiiiciest/status/1316849605808590848
> 
> Ebisu is a shrimp  
> Genma is a jellyfish  
> Guy is a seahorse  
> Kakashi is an octopus

Genma was drifting behind Ebisu while he gathered plankton, gushing about these new recipes he’d been dying to make. Genma had had to sit through a long discussion that mostly consisted of Ebisu’s complaints about the quality of plankton that he could get from the village compared to the richer flavors found in those from the wild. So, Genma shrugged and tagged along, admittedly curious, since Ebisu sounded so passionate about it. He liked plankton, too, and they were pretty easy to hunt, if a bit tedious to gather in large amounts.

They didn’t swim too far past the reef barrier. Genma just held the coral to stop the light current from driving him away and used his tentacles to hunt for plankton. He wasn’t quite sleeping through the easy task, since Ebisu would notice if he was _that_ unenthused about it, but he might as well have been.

For the most part, the jellyfish merman just floated carefreely. He floated facing the seafloor first. Once he decided that the small animals coming back to rest in their homes at the reef were boring, Genma flipped around to face towards the sky.

The sky had little bright points in it that were indecisive if they were to have light or not, turning their shines on and off, on and off, vibrating in the far away world above the waters. Genma had no real interest in dry land, but the lights were pretty nice.

A flicker of movement caught Genma’s attention from the corner of his eye. He slowed down and listened as vibrations rippled through the water, suddenly on high alert in case any large predators had managed to sneak up on them. Genma and Ebisu could put up a good fight against most wild beasts, but if something was stalking them, they’d be better off taking advantage of their superior speed to swim away to hide in a cove.

By the time he stilled and tucked his bangs out of the way, Genma had missed the source of the initial flash of movement, but he saw the faraway figures it had come from. There was something else reaching after it. He leaned forward, but didn’t let go of his anchor, ready to grab Ebisu and slingshot away for safety if he felt threatened by anything.

In the distance, he could barely make out the form of the twisting arms of an octopus. On the hunt for dinner? Whatever was fleeing from it, it seemed pretty large. A whole school of fish? A fabled battle between a squid and shark, maybe. Or maybe an octopus versus a weaker octopus—those things were known cannibals.

Genma glanced at the open sea. The waves were getting rougher, the current wilder. He felt bad for the wild beast’s prey, but he'd float back and watch this slice of the circle of life. He wasn’t in any rush to get involved in a fight between any wild animals, especially animals that spirited and untamed. At least those things were too busy with each other to pose any active threat to Genma and Ebisu.

Whatever the octopus was hunting, it was fast and very brightly colored. It moved in a blur of greens and oranges as it darted about, occasionally shooting right into the octopus and then back away like a tackle hit-and-run. It was an unusually contentious for a scene of a predator stalking its prey. It looked more like a heated battle than a one-sided hunt.

His eyebrows rose in interest when the flashy green prey finally came to a halt, backed into the rocky corner of a small alcove. The encroaching web of the octopus's limbs spread and blocked off every escape route. The cornered creature glanced every which way for a method of escape, and now that they weren’t moving around so swiftly, Genma could finally see that it was two mermen.

From this angle, Genma could even recognize the green one—an old friend. And the octopus was his rival.

Genma sighed. This was yet another one of Kakashi and Guy’s “matches”.

Kakashi took advantage of Guy’s momentarily divided focus to wrap his tentacles around Guy and reel him into an uncomfortable looking hold. Though they seemed smaller and weaker in comparison to Guy’s arms, all of Kakashi’s tentacles were very strong and efficiently kept Guy in place. He looked very snugly trapped. Guy was an exceptional infighter and out fighter, but there was little he could do to counter anything if his freedom of movement was completely robbed from him.

For a moment, Genma wondered if he should try to help, but he dismissed the thought. Guy was strong enough to handle himself.

Within seconds, Guy had already broken free. Guy tried to forced his dash away, dodging the twisting tentacles and almost weaving his way past, until Kakashi caught him by the tail and dragged him back down. Still, it was obvious that Guy was holding his own just fine.

Genma settled back to drift against the current. “They’re at it again,” he drawled.

Ebisu flicked an antenna in acknowledgment, glancing over at Genma. Before he could ask, Genma pointed out the pair of dueling mermen. Their battle was so animated, Ebisu was a little surprised he hadn't noticed them sooner.

“Yet another childish challenge?” Ebisu shook his head with a downturned, exasperated expression. “They never get tired of this nonsense? I don’t know why Guy insists on—”

“—Head’s up.” Genma propelled himself out of the way. Ebisu was a moment too late to notice and far too late to dodge when Guy and Kakashi suddenly barreled past them in their haste.

Ebisu was whirled around from the force, left spinning in tight circles and dropping many of the plankton he’d just collected. His ruddy plates of armor shined in the light as he shifted upward slightly, displaying pairs of tiny, tucked in legs that paddled until Ebisu had regained his balance in the water. “Hey! Watch where you’re going!”

The complaint was fruitless. Those two mermen were in their own little world. As if they didn’t even hear Ebisu’s grievances at all, the rivals kept their focus on each other, locked into another back-and-forth struggle. It seemed like Guy was finally getting the upper hand. All of Kakashi’s tentacles were gathered together and trapped in the iron grip of Guy’s curled tail, and Kakashi’s wrists were held up above his head in the fixed grasp of Guy’s hands. Every limb Kakashi had was effectively restrained in Guy’s superior strength. Kakashi thrashed around to try to throw him off or pull something free.

A particularly rough shove sent the seahorse merman careening straight towards Genma. This time, Genma didn’t make any move to dodge. Guy crashed right into his chest.

“Oof —Sorry! My bad!” Guy dizzily shook his head and offered an apologetic smile to his living bolster. “Thanks for cushioning my landing.”

“It’s fine,” Genma said, holding Guy under the armpits as he helped him get back upright. “You okay, Guy?”

Guy brightened when he recognized that voice. “Genma! My dear friend!” Guy flitted around his friend with keen interest and a complete lack of hesitation about brushing against Genma’s stinging tentacles. “You look as vibrant as ever! No wonder I had such a comfortable crash landing if you were the one who I ran into!”

The jellyfish merman was really a wonder to look at. Long tendrils cascaded down his back, extending from underneath a gelatinous hood-like covering on his head, like a veil over his long brown hair. The tentacles came in a range of colors, some an electrifying blue, others ranging from transparent to translucent with hints of color on the edges. His lower body was puffy with sheer, shimmery layers in the same hues. His tail looked delicate and elegant, despite being shockingly sturdy.

Guy turned around when he heard Ebisu clearing his throat in annoyance. “Well, sorry not all of us can be as soft-bodied as Genma or Kakashi,” the shrimp man mumbled. Genma had always been the more popular of the two, and Ebisu couldn’t hide his bitterness at that.

“Ebisu!” Guy pulled him into a hug, tail against tail. Ebisu’s legs pushed against him. “Don’t be like that! You know I’ve always admired your natural suit of armor!”

The three of them were an unusual combination, but these two had been two of Guy’s oldest friends—right behind Kakashi, of course. Guy laughed while he happily splashed his tail, taking Ebisu’s hands and twirling around with him. “Our legendary trio, together again! What brings you guys so far out? Were you in the middle of a heated match, too?”

“No—we’re getting—plankton—” Ebisu said, having a rough time trying to fit a word in edgewise while Guy was still revolving them around. “Why am we spinning?!”

Guy let go, and Ebisu was left whirling in the water yet again. “Hunting plankton, huh? Can I help?” Guy offered, going back to swimming around Ebisu and Genma in cheery, wide arcs while he waited for Ebisu to regain his bearings.

Guy kept circling them until Kakashi reappeared. His tentacles wrapped around Guy, curling around his waist and tail and dorsal fin, and Guy halted. The last pair of tentacles coiled around his shoulders while Kakashi’s hands pinched his cheeks in annoyance. “You begged me to have this challenge with you. Stop getting distracted.”

Guy snorted and pulled Kakashi’s hands off his face. Guy tilted his chin to nuzzle against the tentacle draped over his shoulder, and it curled around his neck loosely. “Time out. Let’s put our fight on pause!” He lightly squeezed Kakashi’s wrists in a playful show of affection. “This is Genma and Ebisu we’re talking about! It’d be rude of me not to say ‘hi’ to two of my closest friends after I accidentally rammed right into them! Let’s both have a short break. Afterwards, I promise to return to kicking your ass.”

Kakashi sighed, but slowly relented. He loosened the hold of his tentacles on Guy, but kept his arms wrapped around his shoulders. “Fine. I’ll give you a break, since you’re such a tired old man.”

Guy cocked an eyebrow and swished his tail. “I’m as youthful and spry as ever!”

With a haughty chuckle, Kakashi laid his weight against Guy and closed his eye, letting out a yawned, “I guess you’re just lazy, then?”

“I don’t want to hear that from someone who’s trying to take a nap on my back.” Despite the complaint, Guy let Kakashi hold on, adjusting his pose slightly so Kakashi could cling to Guy’s back as a proper holdfast in something resembling a piggyback.

He didn’t mind it. Guy was a weak swimmer as a kid, but nowadays, he could easily tread in place against the strongest currents, even with the added deadweight of a sleeping Kakashi.

“…Um, does…” Ebisu fidgeted shyly and cleared his throat again, interrupting the playful little squabble. Guy turned his attention to Ebisu. Kakashi didn’t react. Ebisu adjusted his dark goggles very deliberately, pushing the glasses slowly further up his nose. “D-does Kakashi always hold onto you like that? With all of… those?”

“Those?” Guy tilted his head in confusion.

Ebisu watched Kakashi’s tentacles drift lazily over Guy’s body. “Those,” he said again. His antennae moved more erratically than he normally let them in public as he did his best to hide his embarrassment. Ebisu may have been okay at schooling his face, but his antennae were a dead giveaway of his emotions for anyone who knew what the movements meant.

Guy had no idea what he was embarrassed about, though. “His tentacles?” Guy asked.

“Yes. _Those_ ,” Ebisu answered in a clipped, appalled voice. He coughed into his hand as if he could hide his blush, another thing he had poor control over, and nodded.

Kakashi peeked his eye back open in cautious curiosity.

“Now that you mention it, he’s really clingy. That can’t be comfortable.” Genma added. “You don’t mind it, Guy?”

“Not at all! I’m happy Kakashi’s getting into our rivalry lately! I won’t get any stronger if he holds back on me!” Guy gave Genma and Ebisu a thumb up, and one of Kakashi’s tentacle curled around the wrist that he was holding up, the fine tip petting at the fingers curled around a fist. “Don’t worry, I can break out of any hold Kakashi puts me in! I’m stronger and faster than him!”

“That’s not…” Ebisu fidgeted a little more, then made a face and tugged Genma close to whisper something in his ear.

Genma grimaced and dimly glowed, staring at Kakashi’s tentacles. “Yeah, Guy, I have to agree with Ebisu here. I don’t think you should let Kakashi cling to you like that.”

Guy blinked, and Kakashi narrowed his eye. “You too, Genma? What’s wrong?” Guy asked.

Genma and Ebisu drew back a short distance, and Genma motioned for Guy to follow.

Guy gently pulled away, escaping from Kakashi’s grasp and swimming up to Ebisu and Genma, his little fins flittering to keep him afloat. Kakashi righted himself and treaded water where he was, leveling a dubious stare at Guy’s trio.

“Why are you two so shaken up all of a sudden?” Guy began before Ebisu could make his case. “My competitions with Kakashi are vital to me! The reason I’m so strong now is because I’ve had a rival like him! There’s nothing in the world that could make me give up on our rivalry! Trust me, Kakashi himself has tried and failed to get rid of me ever since we were kids. I couldn’t throw it away now after I’d come this far.”

Rather than dash right off to resume his match with Kakashi, the flashy seahorse merman did a loop around Ebisu and Genma and grinned down at them, expression housing something genuine and sweet that they couldn't hope to guess through the ripple and warp of the water.

“After all,” Guy continued, sounding sincere. “I need to get even stronger than I am now. Stronger than I was yesterday, and today. I need to swim faster, and grip tighter! There are important things I have to protect. Like Kakashi! And like the two of you! Properly, this time.”

A brief silence settled over the shoal. The memory of Guy’s father dying to protect Guy, Genma, and Ebisu from a pack of sharks still hung heavily over all of them. If Guy’s goal was to make sure never to witness that again or feel that sense of helplessness again, no one there could fault him for that. And no one could deny the progress he had made.

“Guy,” Genma started. “We know you’ve got our backs. You’re the most reliable merman I know. You could punch out a dozen sharks on your own.”

Guy perked up proudly and fanned his gills out, tail swaying and flicking the fans and small hip fins wide open as he leaned forward, right into Genma’s personal space. “And that belief you have in me means everything, Genma!” Guy declared passionately. Their faces were so close, Guy nearly brushed against Genma’s veil of tentacles. Genma glowed a little brighter. “So please trust in my taste of rivals, too.”

It took a while for Genma to compose himself after that, but when he eventually did, Guy swam around, taking one each of Ebisu’s and Genma’s hands in his, to pull them both into a tight group hug. Well, tight was an understatement, but neither Genma nor Ebisu cared that they couldn’t really breathe, so neither brought it up. It did soften into a more relaxed hug after a moment, with both of Guy’s arms around Ebisu’s and Genma’s shoulders, and theirs around his waist.

“That’s why I want to be stronger, faster, the most powerful creature in the deep blue sea. If Kakashi ever needs me, I’ll appear in the nick of time for him. And if the three of us are ever up against a shark again, I won’t run. If you’re up against anything threatening you that’s too much for you to handle alone, I won’t run. I’ll be strong enough to protect both of you and make it back with a smile. That dream is everything to me.”

Both of them didn’t want to pull away from the hug, so that’s where they stayed for a while longer, in Guy’s arms. A powerful shower of relief and safety washed over both of them. Kakashi pouted and stayed at a distance, eyes burning holes in the back of their heads.

“The three of us will always be friends,” Guy pulled out of the hug to give them each a Nice Guy pose. “But I can’t give up my rivalry with Kakashi for anything, because that’d be like giving up on all of you, and most importantly, giving up on myself. And those are things you know I’d never do.”

Ebisu cleared his throat, tail flicking nonsense swirls into the sand. “Listen, Guy… I get what you’re saying. Your dream is all well and good. It’s very admirable that you want to protect us. But I didn’t say anything about your rivalry.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, knock yourself out with whatever challenges you want,” Genma said with a shrug. He reached over to tousle Guy’s hair playfully. “You’ve gotten bigger and stronger than any seahorse merman in history. No one’s saying otherwise.”

“And we definitely didn’t say we don’t trust you,” Ebisu added. “Geez, you’re always in your own little world. I can’t follow your train of thought at all, Guy.”

Guy laughed, sounding a bit embarrassed for having misread their intent. “Then why are both of you so nervous about Kakashi and his tentacles all of a sudden?”

Ebisu’s finger twirled around one of his antennae anxiously, like a loose strand of hair. “Right. The tentacles. The issue about that is…” Ebisu’s voice trailed off.

“You’re such a worrywart, Ebisu.” Guy patted his shoulder sympathetically. “It’s alright, you can tell me anything.”

Ebisu looked between Guy and Kakashi one more time. The tiny front arms where shell segments met his torso paddled through the water slightly as Ebisu swam closer to Guy. Ebisu put his hands firmly on Guy’s shoulders, leaned in, and whispered something into his ear that Kakashi couldn’t make out. A few seconds went by of dumbfounded staring as Guy let whatever he’d been told sink in.

“…Eh? Really? You’re serious?” Guy yelled, reeling back in shock. His voice had gone up an octave. “Kakashi can _taste_ with his tentacles?!”

Kakashi cringed. Genma barked out a short laugh.

“—Oh, defeat the whole purpose of whispering, why don’t you!?” Ebisu yelled, his antennae crooking sharply down in irritation.

“Kakashi, can you really?” Guy turned his attention back to the cecaelia, namely, his lower half that sprouted off into a multitude of writhing tentacles. “Those are giant tongues?!”

Kakashi folded arms while fluttering his other eight limbs in annoyance. “…Something like that,” he grudgingly admitted.

“I had no idea! You think you know a guy, but even after all these years, Kakashi never fails to surprise me.” Guy nodded to himself. “I guess there are a lot of things those can do…”

Genma whispered something else in Guy’s ear, and this time, Guy took longer to digest the information.

“–What?!” Guy just barely had the sense of mind to tense, eyeing Kakashi again as yards of tentacles spread out. Guy wrapped his arms around his own body like he was trying to cover himself. “Kakashi, you’ve been tasting _me_ all this time?!”

“You’re as slow on the uptake as ever,” Ebisu said with a huff. He pouted and stared off into the distance, covering his face and reiterating a hushed, “It’s… rather indecent, don’t you think?”

Genma shook his head and flashed Kakashi his best “friendly” grin. Genma’s stinging tentacles danced around him. “Careful, Guy. I know it’s easy to forget because of that awful personality of his—”

“—Excuse me?” Kakashi interrupted.

“But Kakashi _is_ a predator,” Genma finished, aiming a teasing smirk in Kakashi’s direction.

It was a tongue-in-cheek taunt. Cannibalism was extremely rare among modern merfolk, despite Kakashi’s unfortunate moniker as a “friend-killer”.

Kakashi bobbed up to his eye level, giving Genma the best one-eyed stink eye that he could. Flicking his tentacles in thinly veiled agitation, Kakashi huffed, “Last time I checked, jellyfish were predators, too.”

“I don’t go around licking people. And I keep my tentacles to myself.” Genma deadpanned with a casual shrug. “You know, Ebisu, now that you mention it, the way Kakashi holds Guy is the same way an octopus holds its lunch. Don’t you think so, Guy?”

Guy closed his eyes and nodded to himself, deep in thought. “So, when they’re doing that, they’re getting a taste for their kill… I have seen it before from wild octopi. I finally get it now.”

“—Guy,” Kakashi said, a desperate edge in his voice. “They’re being ridiculous. You don’t buy any of this, do you?”

Guy snapped out of his imaginations, looking at Kakashi with a pensive expression. “Ebisu’s pretty smart. I’ve never known him to be wrong about this sort of thing. Can you really taste with your tentacles or not?”

“It’s… Sure, I know what you taste like,” Kakashi confessed reluctantly. Because, honestly, if it was Kakashi’s word against Ebisu’s, they both knew Kakashi was the one who lied to Guy more. Genma and Ebisu made some sort of expression, but Kakashi kept his eye on Guy, who was unusually unreadable.

“So, you admit you really have been shamelessly tasting Guy’s body all over…” Ebisu said with a shudder. He reiterated, “That’s so indecent.”

“And Guy thought he was getting innocent wrestling matches…” Genma clicked his tongue in mock disappointment.

“—That _is_ what he was getting,” Kakashi insisted. He addressed Guy directly again as he continued, “It’s not like that. It’s just for identifying you. That’s all I use your ‘taste’ for. I’m not planning on devouring you.” He looked steady into Guy’s eyes, but it felt like he was trying to convince himself. “If that was my plan, don’t you think I already would have done it, back when you were slower and chubbier?”

“So, you _also_ thought about when Guy would have made a better, easier meal,” Genma gawked.

“He admitting he thought about it at all!?” Ebisu shrilled.

“—I’m not going to eat my friend!” Kakashi involuntarily raised his voice, pupils dilated and tentacles stretched out threateningly.

“…What do I taste like?” Guy interjected smoothly, deescalating the fight and bringing their attention back to the matter at hand.

Immediately, the argument dropped, and all three mermen stared at Guy in puzzlement.

Curious, Guy’s tongue darted out over his lips, and, apparently tasting nothing, he tried to lick the palm of his hand instead. Guy noticed all their stares directed at him and chuckled awkwardly. His attitude reassured Kakashi that there wasn’t a drop of fear or apprehension in his heart –at least, not for Kakashi.

“What do I taste like, Kakashi?” Guy asked again, giving up on figuring it out for himself.

Genma and Ebisu deflated and exchanged a glance, a smile, and a defeated chuckle, because they couldn’t even be surprised at Guy’s unpredictability at this point. Kakashi had to grab onto himself, his tentacles curling onto the rock a little more, some of them raising up to wrap onto themselves in a strange mixture of relief and excitement. “You… got over the shock fast,” he laughed.

Ebisu sighed. “I guess I should have seen that coming. Guy’s unflappable at the weirdest times…”

Kakashi grinned back at Guy and said, “It’s not the same as the way food tastes on my tongue, if that’s what you’re asking.”

Guy snorted out a laugh, his flared fins relaxing. “That’s not an answer! Come on, Kakashi, I’m curious now! I really want to know!” Guy posed and flexed his muscles to show off his body. Kakashi’s tentacles curled tighter around himself. Genma and Ebisu couldn’t help but stare, either. “Am I appetizing? I’ve never thought about it! Would you call me a gourmet meal? I should know, so I have a good idea of how many wild predators I’ll be fighting off me!”

“Hmm…” Kakashi hummed. “I don’t really know how to answer that off the top of my head…”

Guy brought his arms down and waved his tail understandingly. “Oh well, that’s okay.”

“—But maybe I can answer you if I refresh my memory?” Kakashi said, half-jokingly. The grin on his face really did look predatory now.

Genma and Ebisu grimaced at Kakashi at the implication. “You’re not seriously going to indulge him, are you, Guy?” Ebisu asked. His eyebrow quirked, with one antenna raised up higher than the other one.

Guy beckoned Kakashi over with open arms. “Sure! I’m game! Refresh your memory, Rival!”

Flexing his tentacles, Kakashi glided past Genma and Ebisu, who watched with a huffy look. Despite their misgivings, neither of them actually moved to intercede as Kakashi approached Guy— perhaps under the assumption that Kakashi wasn’t really _that_ bold.

With just a few flicks of his tentacles and a playful smile with a flash of his pointed teeth, Kakashi swam closer, loosely looping his tentacles around Guy’s waist. Guy reached for him, gripping one of his tentacles as it snaked around him, and Kakashi’s breath caught.

Guy inspected it inquisitively. His fingertips ran along the soft, sensitive limbs in search for something like a taste bud. He wrapped his hands around the part of the limb extending from Kakashi’s torso. It was squishy, soft and not quite as smooth as expected. Velvety and slimy, rather. Guy’s fingers lightly brushed against the suckers along the bottom as Guy slid his hand the full way down its length from its thick base. The tendril tapered slightly as it went on. Kakashi suppressed a tremor and held back the urge curl around him for now.

When Guy finally stilled his fingers at its tip and nodded his permission, he felt the tentacle slide out of his palms. Slipping behind Guy and leaning over him with his best "Smug Bastard" smirk aimed at Guy’s other friends, Kakashi chimed, "See? Guy trusts me.” Kakashi wrapped himself around Guy and ran tentacles across every part of his body, mapping him out. “I’m just doing this to sate his curiosity and answer his question."

Ebisu’s face scrunched and his eyebrows knitted as he stared at Kakashi, then at Guy. He opened his mouth like he was going to say something, and some small sound croaked out, but Ebisu ultimately couldn’t even find the words. He just kept it at his best forced “Oh, that’s nice” smile. Genma fell silent aside from a huff, not bothering with any niceties.

Guy felt the warm, wriggling sensation crawl up from his sides. The impossibly long tentacles wrapped themselves around his torso, his tail, his arms, keeping Guy securely in place. They ascended further and further, bringing an involuntary flush of color change to Guy’s tail. His heart raced as he looked down at himself, torso encased by Kakashi’s dark tentacles. They poked and prodded every inch of him, pressed down or caressed, pinching and kneaded Guy’s muscles with fervor. It was strange to think that all of these things could _taste_ Guy.

Guy shivered when he felt more of Kakashi’s tentacles lift to curl around him. One played with his back fin, another two wrapped around his lower half, two looped around Guy’s arms, one poked at the skin of is abdomen. The last two explored the grooves in his tail, stroking along its bony length sensually. Guy’s hips and abdomen flexed and clenched, his tail trying to curl itself around the tentacles caressing it.

Kakashi’s ability to touch everywhere at once used to be a little overwhelming, back when they were kids and it always gave Kakashi a then-insurmountable edge in their battles. Guy was pretty tiny, and Kakashi’s tentacles seemed so much longer back then, as if they could swallow him up whole.

Not, it almost felt overwhelming all over again, but for completely new reasons. Guy really felt swallowed up by Kakashi’s body around his. And he was not a small man, he was fairly large— but then, so was Kakashi, and the way Guy was curling into himself while Kakashi spread around him seemed to emphasize that. The tentacles tightly coiled around his forearms prevented much movement. Even if Guy struggled against the restraints, they would remain by his hips.

“I’ll let go of you if you want.” Kakashi offered, giving him an unreadable look. “Ebisu wasn’t wrong. This is how a wild octopus would hold its prey.”

It wasn’t the daring tone Kakashi would use in a challenge when he was trying to goad Guy into answering one way or another. It was a low, sincere tone of voice. It almost sounded fearful.

“This isn’t so bad,” Guy assured Kakashi, just as earnest, because Kakashi really was just Kakashi, nothing more and nothing less. “In fact, I still like it! Having you wrapped around me is heartening, even if you’re basically licking me! Hold onto me all you’d like!”

Kakashi laughed again, muffled it by burrowing his face in the back of Guy’s neck. The skin of his tentacles rolled gradients of color from the top down to its base. Guy had never quite figured out how to interpret Kakashi’s cecaelian color mood language, especially since Kakashi’s color changes were always so much more deliberate than Guy’s, but he knew this particular mix of colors was one of his favorite messages from Kakashi. Whatever the specifics of it meant, Guy recognized it as a pattern that only showed up during Kakashi’s rare moments of open, unmitigated joy.

“‘This isn’t so bad’,” Kakashi echoed in a sing-song voice, lips pulling upward into a smirk as he made eye contact with Genma. Genma answered with a scowl, and Kakashi stuck out of tongue and reeled Guy in closer. One of his tentacles tickled along Guy’s bare skin until he’d coaxed another laugh out of Guy. “He likes it.”

Genma rolled his eyes. “That means you can get on with it and answer his question, since he doesn’t see you as a real octopus. Good for you.”

Kakashi made an aggravated scoff at him. The two tentacles around Guy’s dorsal fin instead moved along Guy’s sides, their suckers pressing little kisses.

“I’ve never actively thought about how you taste, Guy. But I’ll do my best to check thoroughly and give you a good answer.”

Carefully, Kakashi began peeling off the few accessories Guy wore, and the two arms around Guy’s dorsal fin lifted to help them. The belts and trinkets fell to the bottom of the seafloor soundlessly. When he was done with that, the tentacles that had “undressed” him returned to Guy’s sides, petting him searchingly.

“Your taste is… How would I describe you?” Guy felt a slimy tentacle stripe along his underside. Ebisu watched as Kakashi continued to trace the shape of Guy’s body. He looked wide-eyed, but it was hard to tell with those glasses of his. His antennae were twitching back and forth.

In contrast, Genma just looked away, averting his eyes with a sigh, hands clenching and unclenching. Genma’s tentacles swayed when he turned his head and pretended his attention was absorbed in some faraway marine creature. His emotional tells weren’t as obvious as Ebisu’s emotive feelers, but there was something that gave him away –that hint of a glow cloaking his body, something he could do on command but only did involuntarily when he was disturbed or flustered.

With a smug satisfaction, Kakashi continued. “You’re briny, I guess. Tangy. A bit spicy…”

Kakashi’s tentacles pressed their suckers over Guy’s skin. One focused on his back fin, tracing the bones and where they connected to Guy’s spine. A spot on Guy’s ribs tingled, and then there was a tendril slinking over his chest, his abs. It dipped into his bellybutton and skated from hip bone to hip bone. It would tickle, normally. Instead, it just made Guy shiver. All of the tentacles had settled somewhere on his body, kneading Guy’s backside all the way down his tail as other tentacles splayed all over his torso, particularly his chest.

Guy had worked hard to build up muscle over the years. Kakashi’s tentacles took their time to measure and appreciate them during this little taste-test, slinking up and down Guy’s abs, curling around his pectorals and biceps. Kakashi noticed with interest that the other two said nothing about it. They both radiated an air of scalding envy.

“It’s hard to describe, but I wouldn’t mistake your taste for anyone else. I have every bit of you memorized.”

The tentacles flippantly stroked the old, healed injuries, the bruises and nicks of faded sharp teeth marks and battle wounds. Kakashi’s tentacles traced them as if they were fresh. They rutted against the peaks and valleys of his muscles and abs and hips and fins.

The soft pops of Kakashi’s suckers on his skin felt like kisses. A unique array of touches, velvet smooth tentacles and rubbery suckers and calloused hands tracing over every inch of Guy’s skin lightly. Guy turned to face Kakashi, murmuring a quiet, “This feels good.”

He wasn’t sure if he’d meant to let that slip out or not, but when Kakashi heard that, the touches gradually grew a bit bolder. Guy trembled and Kakashi whispered against his collarbone, “What else feels good, Guy? Don’t tell me you’re enjoying this? That sounds a little ‘indecent’… I thought I was getting an innocent question.” It was a whisper, but it was loud enough to carry itself to both Ebisu and Genma, who each looked varying combinations of annoyed and scandalized. Before Guy could respond to him, Kakashi’s tentacles continued their exploration and stole his voice away in a breathy grunt. “You know, your taste isn’t the only thing I know about you. I know your whole body like a map.”

Kakashi’s tentacles tightened. He found Guy’s pulse, felt the beat under his skin. The tips ran over scars, body pressed against Guy as he counted the rhythm of the heart pounding in Guy’s chest.

“I know every scar and bump and dimple.”

Guy chirped and squirmed in place, a bundle of energy that couldn't lie still. Handily, Kakashi responded by wrapping his arms around Guy, pulling him tight. His searing touch was shameless, raking hot and heavy over the entirety of Guy’s bare skin. Guy’s heart began to pound.

“Your flavors, your scent, your shape… There’s a good reason I can always track you down, even in my clouds of ink. Even blindfolded, I’d know it was you I was holding onto. I know you.”

Kakashi stared at his own tentacle as he ran the tip up Guy’s neck, slid it along his jawline, traced the sharp rise of his cheekbone. Kakashi wondered if anyone had ever touched Guy like this. Maybe as a friend –certainly not as a lover. If Guy were ever to mate, he’d mate for life. That’s how seahorses were. Kakashi had to be careful not to allow himself to get too caught up in the moment. Kakashi breathed a careful breath. The tentacle that was touching Guy’s cheek moved to trace along his bottom lip.

“I know you inside and out.”

Kakashi trailed his tentacles over Guy’s body, far less innocently than before, leaving behind gropes and pinches in sensitive spots. A tentacle curved along Guy’s chest to squeeze the muscle of his pecs. His pecs fit nicely and fully in Kakashi’s coiled tentacles, a pleasant mix of firm and soft. Guy couldn’t help the small noise that escaped his lips when the suction cup of a tentacle tweaked the buds on his chest.

Kakashi used that little sound as an opportunity to shove one of his tentacles past Guy’s parted lips, immediately filling Guy’s mouth. Guy gasped around the sudden intrusion, holding back the instinct to bite down on the tough, grooved flesh. He relaxing around it as Kakashi continued his exploration. In fact, to facilitate Kakashi, Guy opened his mouth wider and stuck out his tongue, letting the built-up saliva drip. The tentacle sat there, heavy and twitching as Guy involuntarily drooled around it.

“Oh. I’ve figured it out. You taste like someone who just finished eating seaweed salad,” Kakashi teased.

Guy laughed again at the sudden non-sequitur. It was a cute, muffled sound around the soft tentacle. Guy let out another muffled sound, which almost sounded like “Kakashi! Seriously?” in that tone he always used to complain at him.

“What? I’m trying my best. I really have to think about it.” Kakashi responded airily, playing dumb. “Like I said, it’s different from how you’d taste on my actual tongue.”

With his actual tongue, Kakashi licked Guy’s nape with a slow sweep. His mouth grazed Guy’s skin, then traced along his neck. The caress of lips on the back of his neck sent a flush of excitement through Guy’s body, tinting his tail in another involuntary color change. The seahorse equivalent of a blush.

“You taste saltier on my tongue. Warmer. Sort of bland, if I’m telling the truth…”

Guy blew a huff of bubbles from his noise, sounding insulted at that remark. The tentacle in Guy’s mouth slid in further, and Guy closed his lips around it. It thrusted lightly back and forth, tracing over the textures of his tongue and indulging in the taste, while Kakashi’s tongue traced patterns against the side of Guy’s neck, carefully skirting around his sensitive gills.

“And as far as eating you goes…” Kakashi murmured, baring his sharp teeth.

The tentacles wrapped around his waist reeled him in closer, curling tighter around his tail and dorsal fin. With a hand in Guy’s hair, Kakashi gently tugged, and Guy tipped his head back and bared his neck. Kakashi nibbled at Guy’s skin, ran his teeth along his shoulders and jawline ineffectually. It left a small mark, but didn’t break the skin. Kakashi licked the shell of Guy’s ear and nibbled down to his earlobe. Sharp teeth scraped against the sensitive outer ridge of his ear, and the warm breath puffing against his skin sent a shiver down Guy’s spine. Feeling Guy’s body quake while it was still pressed to Kakashi’s was so enticing.

Then Kakashi’s lips were back on his neck, tentacles holding Guy in place as Kakashi nipped and sucked at the column of Guy’s throat. The light bruise Kakashi’s mouth left on Guy’s neck was just as clear as the ones left all over the rest of Guy’s body by his suckers. The marks wouldn't last long, but all four of them would always know they were there. Kakashi could tell that Ebisu and Genma were furious about every single one.

Guy was so delicious it made Kakashi feel lightheaded with desire. Kakashi liked him like this, with his racing heartbeat and tinted tail and wanton fidgeting. Kakashi wanted him like this, wanted everything he could get. Guy was so good.

Kakashi wasn’t about to put it in those exact words. He refused to give Genma and Ebisu more ammo to scare Guy away.

“Not to be mean, Guy, but you’d be way too muscular and gamey to eat. By my tentacles or by my tongue, you’re no good as food. I’d be better off eating something fattier, richer, easier to chew… like jellyfish or shrimp.”

Kakashi shot a pointed look over at their captive audience. Genma still wasn’t watching at all. He was laying back with his eyes closed, pretending he was asleep. Ebisu, on the other hand, didn’t seem able to pull his eyes away from the show as Kakashi continued petting along Guy’s sides, his suckers just shy of making more marks on his sides.

Kakashi snorted.

“ _You_ get it, right, Ebisu? I have to do this.” Kakashi pleaded his appeal too-innocently. “Guy and I can’t protect each other if we can’t find each other. As long as I’m familiar with him like this, I won’t lose track of him, even in the darkest waters. I’d never eat him. And really, when you think about it…”

Tentacles curled around, trailing their tapered tips where the softer skin of Guy’s torso gave way to Guy’s spiny, armored tail skin. His touch tingled, his suckers peppering the skin even more obscene kisses as they moved across Guy’s tail. The ends of one of the appendages grazed the anal fin at the front of Guy’s hips, then dragged down beneath it, lingering somewhere that made Guy arch into his touch, squeezing his eyes shut. He didn’t bite down on the tentacle in his mouth, but Kakashi could feel a low noise vibrate against them. It might have been “Kakashi—!” again, it might have been a wordless moan.

“All I’m doing is wrapping my arms around my ‘eternal rival’. Rivalry’s a pure, innocent, beautiful, youthful thing,” Kakashi pointed out mockingly, borrowing a few phrases from Guy. “So, I don’t see anything indecent about it.”

When Kakashi finally slipped his tentacle out of Guy’s mouth, Guy left his mouth open, tongue lolled as he caught his breath. The rest of the tentacles loosened their hold.

All of the tentacles in, around, and restraining Guy removed themselves from his body, leaving him feeling bare from the sudden lack of physical contact. The last remnants of the tentacles unstuck from him with a muted pop. It was almost disorienting, and it took Guy a moment to tread and keep himself afloat.

Ebisu reached over and helped steady Guy, letting out a breath of relief that it seemed to be over. “Okay. Guy has his answer, more-or-less. I learned a ‘valuable’ lesson about rivalry,” Ebisu huffed, folding his arms over his chest. “Are you done with this nonsense?”

Guy’s moment of reprieve was short. He was grabbed again, pulled away from Ebisu, and pinned on the smooth stone of a large boulder on the seafloor in a flurry of black and violet appendages. In a fluid motion, Kakashi was on top of him and his tentacles were curling all around Guy’s body, more tenderly than they were before. In the blink of an eye, Kakashi had his body pressed flush against Guy’s front, and the cool stone pressed against his back, limbs trapped in a more complex hold than before.

“Guy!” Ebisu squeaked in concern. His antennae were raised up almost straight, eyebrows creased and his eyes nearly glimmering with worry. “Kakashi, what are you doing now?!”

Genma opened his eyes again and peeked at the commotion. When he finally spotted them, his entire body tensed. “Yeah, what exactly do you think you’re doing?”

Kakashi gave Genma a look that Guy couldn’t read, then there was a wry smirk that spread on his face as he leaned in closer to Guy. “This isn’t a predator holding down his prey,” Kakashi purred. He moved his hands to Guy’s hips to hold him steady, digging his fingers in hard enough that his nails might well leave bruises. He rocked against Guy’s hips to make sure Guy was truly restrained. “This is a rival holding down his rival.” The dark tentacles continued to hold Guy in place, adjusting him slightly.

“I could kill you right now, if that’s what I wanted from you.” Kakashi buried his face in the crook of Guy’s neck, lapping lightly against his pulse.

For the first time in so many years, Guy was truly at someone else's mercy, with no escape easy or quick enough to out speed a counter to it. And Guy had willingly allowed himself to be pulled into this position.

He was exposed and vulnerable, pinned beneath the intensity of that stare, the weight of that body, the strength of those many tentacles. The tentacles holding him down still danced along his skin, rubbing Guy all over. Kakashi’s tentacles were gorgeous and sinuous beyond words, and mesmerizing as they flowed around him in the water. They were also strong enough to shatter a rib cage with a single directed squeeze.

And still, Guy’s body didn’t tense. There was still no fear or apprehension in him.

That attitude was unique to Guy. Neither Ebisu nor Genma had such laidback reactions to the compromising position combined with the unambiguous spoken threat.

Ebisu flinched in concern, and before he could rush forward to pull Kakashi off or pull Guy from under him, Genma had already swiftly swooped in first.

Fine, luminous tentacles flew out, wrapping around Kakashi, who reared back to avoid them. The stingers dangled centimeters away from Kakashi’s skin, glowing ethereally in warning.

“I can get him off you, Guy,” Genma offered, leveling a glare at Kakashi. Genma’s tentacles were very different from Kakashi’s. They were smaller, lighter. They were equipped with painful stingers that Genma could control at will. The tentacles were harmless when he willed them to be, but powerful weapons by default that delivered a powerful sting upon contact.

“Maa… So much for keeping your tentacles to yourself.” Smiling peaceable, Kakashi loosened one of his tentacles, just enough to release one of Guy’s hands.

Guy set his now free hand on Genma’s tentacles, earning a surprised little jolt from Genma before he quickly lowered his guard and held back his stingers. Guy gave him a reassuring look when he looked up at him, gently brushing his thumb along the surface of Genma’s thin tentacles. “Thanks, Genma. But I’m okay! I don’t taste very good,” Guy reminded him, going off Kakashi’s earlier description.

“He doesn’t,” Kakashi agreed, knowing full well Genma could recognize the hunger in his eyes.

Genma glowered at the lie, glow shining brighter.

“Kakashi’s pretty weird, but if I thought I was in any danger, I wouldn’t freeze up. Not anymore,” Guy assured with his best Nice Guy pose. Another reference to how he could only stand by in shock during the shark attack when they were kids.

There were two implicit messages behind those words. “I wouldn’t lie down and die without a fight, because I already promised to be stronger for all of you,” and, “I can’t even imagine that Kakashi would ever hurt me.”

Genma was stopped less by the words themselves or by the hands holding his tendrils, and more meaning behind the words and the sincere look on Guy’s face. If nothing else, he’d wanted to spare himself of seeing Guy make that expression for Kakashi, of all people.

With mixed feelings, Genma’s tentacles rippled and pulsed before they settled down once more and pulled back. “…Fine.” The luminescent jellyfish twirled his tendrils in annoyance, going back to floating away and acting like he didn’t see any of this. Ebisu fluttered back away on the same cue, still monitoring the situation attentively from the short distance.

Kakashi recaptured Guy’s free hand and pulled it down until he was trapped again. “You’re the weird one, Guy. You’re so funny,” Kakashi said, huffing laughter against his lips. “You don’t think anything of it, even when I hold you down like this.”

When Guy made no effort to break free despite the threat, Kakashi smiled against him, sinking back into the crook of his neck. “Your body and mind already know that even if you bare your softest parts to me and let me restrict all your movements, you’ll be fine. You know I won’t hurt you. That’s how much you trust me. Enough that you don’t flinch in a vulnerable position like this. If I wanted to eat you, I’d just have to press my teeth a little too hard, right here, and rip your throat out…”

Guy gasped when he felt his kisses turn back into nibbles, Kakashi’s teeth gently grazing his skin. Gently, lovingly, Kakashi’s lips and teeth attacked his neck while Genma and Ebisu continued to gape.

“And you already know I won’t. That’s all the proof any of us need. This isn’t how I hold my prey,” Kakashi hummed, lips pressed to Guy’s throat. “This is how I hold my rival.”

And then, Kakashi’s tentacles started tickling Guy all over. After a brief moment of trying and failing to hold it in, Guy began giggling helplessly. And the tension vanished just like that, any insinuated threat or possible deeper meaning to the situation dissipated all at once as Guy laughed. The seriousness and sensuality of the moment was gone. It was back to this. Back to Guy tussling and struggling, laughing, trying to form a glare beneath disheveled black bangs but failing because it kept returning to a smile.

He tried to pull free. “Kakashi, what are you—This isn’t fair!” Kakashi felt Guy’s giggling reverberate through his chest.

The pleasant rumble made Kakashi’s smile soften. “All’s fair in rivalry and war,” Kakashi said, borrowing another of Guy’s phrases.

“If it’s a war you want, let me go! I’ll show you a real war, Kakashi!”

Guy yanked his arm free and tackled Kakashi off the stone and into open waters, trying to tickle him back. Kakashi was at an unfair advantage already, and he wasn’t even particularly ticklish, but in spite of himself, he actually did laugh, more from watching Guy try than anything else. Kakashi’s responding laughter rumbled in his chest, and he wiggled in delight all around Guy, until it eventually devolved right back into a grappling battle.

“While we’re on the topic…” Kakashi continued when he’d fallen into the rhythm of the wrestling match again. It was about time to finally change the subject. If not for Genma’s sake, for Ebisu’s. He looked like he was practically about to explode over there. “You wrap your tail around me all the time, too. What does that mean?”

The tip of Guy’s tail curled around a few of Kakashi’s tentacles again. “It means I don’t want to be separated from you, even by the strongest currents!”

Kakashi’s tail changed color again. Guy was so adorable that he warmed Kakashi up in ways he could never admit. If Kakashi wasn’t careful, he’d really look like he wanted to devour Guy. “So, we both just never want to lose each other.” Kakashi turned to the other two mermen. Slowly, Kakashi’s tentacles uncoiled from around Guy. The places where his suckers pulled away felt tender in the cool water. He let go of every part of Guy except the bit of Guy’s tail that clung to him, just to silently brag about it. “What could be more innocent than that?”

“—Okay! Fine! Shut up, already, I get it!” Ebisu turned tail and threw his hands up in a huff. If he was any redder, he’d be a real lobster. “Forget I said anything! You win, Hatake! Are you finished or are you finished?!”

Genma rolled in eyes again, dead silent in order to make it clear to Kakashi that he may as well not exist to him now. But before he could fully fall into a spiral of shock— and thank god, existential crises were not Genma’s style, they had Ebisu for that— Guy swam over to him, apparently having slipped out of Kakashi’s hold again.

Just like that, no effort, no second thought, Guy swept in with a flourish and fixed Genma’s hair. Giving Genma no time to even prepare himself, Guy lifted him up in his arms and spun him around with a laugh. Genma’s tail and the surrounding tentacles billowed in the water.

“See? You can rest assured! No beast nor merman is going to eat me! I’m too ‘gamey’ and ‘bland’,” Guy said, emphasizing those two words like he really was offended to be thought of as anything but delectable. “So, don’t worry so much about me, okay?”

Genma couldn’t help but laugh too, even if he was a bit winded. “Kakashi’s never had great taste anyway. One look at you is enough to tell you’d be delicious, Guy,” Genma joked with a crooked smile.

Guy beamed. “Right? I bet so, too! But it’s good news, in a way!” When Guy let him down go again, Genma took a moment to squeeze his shoulders, where his hands were still placed, stomach doing swoops from the spinning, and smiled up at him. He wasn’t really that much taller than him, but it still made something twist inside Genma.

“So.” Genma said, eyebrows risen as he aimed a side glance at Kakashi. “Since he doesn’t taste good, what are your intentions with Guy?” He sounded almost resigned, but like he had the obligation to ask.

Kakashi didn’t even try to hide how smug he felt. “To be his rival. What else?” In spite of everything else, even in spite of Kakashi’s refusal to answer that question properly, Kakashi had definitely won this little confrontation. Kakashi’s tentacle wrapped around Guy’s waist and tugged him in his direction. “Well, my rival and I have gotten in your way enough. I’ll leave you two to your hunting. Even an old man like Guy must be well rested enough by now to continue our fight.”

“Oh, right! We made such a ruckus! Hope we didn’t scare all the plankton away! I’ll make it up to you guys later!” A familiar bout of laughter and a warm smile graced his face as he rushed off, half-dragged behind Kakashi, waving off friends cheerily. “Wish me luck! Cheer me on!”

Genma and Ebisu waved back until they were out of sight.

Then, “I hate that damn octopus,” Genma grunted. If he was this irritating already, he was going to be insufferable whenever mating season rolled around to cecaelia. Even more so if he kept chickening out and hiding behind his little pretenses.

“That… which tentacle did he use to…” Ebisu shook his head, still trying to process what he’d just witnessed. “I think he just…” Ebisu looked distressed, like he already knew the answer to the question he wasn’t spitting out. For once he didn’t blush, but the way his antennae were twitching, Genma was pretty sure he wanted to.

His hand ran a soothing line over Ebisu’s upper shoulders. “Know what, Ebisu? Let’s forget this ever happened,” Genma said, giving up and swimming off. “I don’t think I’m hungry anymore. I’m heading back to town.”

“What—hey! Wait up, Genma!” Ebisu quickly followed after him.

Farmed plankton would suffice after all.


End file.
